WHEN the final results of Kenya’s presidential election were announced on the evening of August 11th, many feared the worst. Hours previously the opposition, led by Raila Odinga, a perennial presidential candidate, had walked out of a meeting with the electoral commission. James Orengo, one of Mr Odinga’s closest allies, said that the announcement was a “charade” and that the commission was in cahoots with the government. “Kenyans always rise up,” he went on. As he spoke, an ominous silence descended on Nairobi, the capital, as people stayed inside.
Yet in the end, the uprising was relatively subdued. In Mr Odinga’s strongholds, in the slums of Nairobi and in Western Kenya, protesters blocked roads and burned tyres. The police responded with typical brutality, firing tear gas and live rounds into the crowds. After a few days, at least two dozen people were dead, including a nine-year-old girl who was hit by a stray bullet and a six-month-old baby who was clubbed on the head....Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/2v5ypAR
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